Search Results for: blog are you a needy or high maintenance parent

Your Cranky Baby Might Be Einstein

Okay not quite, but if you have a child that is cranky, with a little extra TLC he may just be at the top of his class when he gets to the 1st grade. I find this study interesting on several levels because I have had one of those cranky babies. But I’ll get to that in a minute. The study will be published tomorrow in the Journal of Child Development. Basically, they took approximately 1,300 families and followed the infants from 6 months of age through 1st grade. The hypothesis was that babies who were easy going would do … Continue reading →

Are You Projecting Your Own “Stuff” Onto Your Kids?

“Projection” has become one of those psychological buzz words in recent years and it is used to describe when we try to put our issues and personality traits onto someone else and then accuse them (or interact with them as if) of holding and exhibiting these issues that are actually our own. We’ve certainly all experienced when someone accuses us of something that we can clearly see is “their issue” and not ours. Projecting doesn’t make us bad people or bad parents, but it can get in the way of a genuine interaction and understanding. As parents, we can project … Continue reading →

When You Think You Should Give a Child More of Yourself

I read an article recently that said parents actually spend more time with their children than they did fifty years ago. And yet, we still feel the pressure to give more of ourselves and spend even more “quality” time with our kids. What is a parent to do when the guilts come on and we feel like we should be giving more of ourselves to our child or children? I wrote last month about how I actually enjoy spending time with my kids and there are many times when I want to be with them just because I like them … Continue reading →

Are You a Needy or High Maintenance Parent?

The other day one of my daughters was talking about one her friend’s parents and she referred to her as being “high maintenance.” I had to ask her what that meant? What does it mean when a parent is considered “high maintenance” by a seventeen-year-old? She said, “You know, it’s like she’s needy–she needs to be all involved and re-living her life through her kid.” This got me to thinking about healthy boundaries and how tough it can be to find that healthy balance between involvement and over-involvement–especially in today’s youth-centered culture. I definitely know of parents who get their … Continue reading →

Jessica Simpson’s Rebound Man Takes A Hike

Here’s the deal: no matter how many photos they posed for locked in loving embraces; no matter how many times they expressed their undying affection for one another in interviews; and certainly, no matter how many times she died her hair to match his, I never once believed that Jessica Simpson and John Mayer’s romance was the real deal. Now I can gloat. According to news reports, the popular singers have broken up. Sure, there was an addendum tacked to the report that read: “perhaps not for good,” but I know better and here’s why. First, if you watched even … Continue reading →